


By Demons Be Driven

by Shinohoshi13



Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: Adult Content, Angst, Crude Humor, F/M, Graphic depictions of violence - Freeform, Hurt/Comfort, Magical Realism, Psychological Horror, Strong Language, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-23
Updated: 2018-11-07
Packaged: 2018-12-19 04:19:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,236
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11889852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shinohoshi13/pseuds/Shinohoshi13
Summary: For years she struggled to live, burdened by a long-forgotten past, an unclear present, and a non-existent future. War consumes her life, forcing her to live as if every day is her last. Fate has seen fit to gift her with unnatural abilities far beyond the normal human capacity. With those abilities, she leads a daily game of tag, putting her life on the line over and over again. Will a chance meeting with a young man give this tired young woman the will to keep fighting? And with the war escalating higher and higher, will she have the time to find out who, and what, she really is?(OCx05; slight implied 01x02, 03x04, 06x13; one-sided Rx01.) (Relena bashing.)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Gundam Wing © 1995 Yoshiyuki Tomino and Hajime Yatate, Sotsu Agency, Sunrise, and TV Asahi. Licensed by Bandai Entertainment®. The events portrayed are not necessarily present in the original series of Gundam Wing.
> 
> _I am making all the Gundam characters five years older than what they are. That means I'm pushing back their supposed birth dates and ages, and the length of the war. Also, flames will be used to help Wufei's dragon blow OZ's shit up._

Eighteen hundred years before mankind entered space and founded the Colonies, a group of five scientists gathered and shared information. They knew that war was inevitable, and decided to prepare for it.

That was the biggest mistake they could ever make.

Their ideas gave birth to what they considered as the ultimate weapon. A weapon that could win the war they knew was looming on the horizon. It was only a matter of time before it started.

Time passed, and their research grew to encompass more areas. They logged their data down for future generations.

But one day, a mysterious illness consumed them all, leaving no one behind to continue the research they had started.

When mankind founded the Colonies, the specimen was moved with other material like it onto the L13 Colony Cluster. The people that moved the materials had no idea of the hidden cargo within it.

For nearly two thousand years, the cryogenically frozen specimen had sat in the basements of disused laboratories.

Time had forgotten the weapon the ancients had created for war.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

The Special Forces units that were patrolling a sector of the L13 Colony Cluster stumbled upon an empty warehouse. Given orders to secure it, they made their way into the lower sections of it. What they found was a scientific first. They called in the scientists that were stationed nearby, and the object of their attention was transferred to a new location. Its discovery was kept secret and the unit team that had found it was immediately annihilated.

The scientists were more than willing to sacrifice fifty units to keep the secret they found.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

A transfer unit landed on the L2 Colony and the armed units escorted it to the nearest laboratories. None of the soldiers knew what the transport contained, but had they been aware, they would have deserted as fast as humanly possible.

As it was, they were oblivious to the special cargo, and what the transport really contained. All that mattered was completing the transaction and getting their pay.

The scientists, on the other hand, cared only for the cargo. They had eyes only for what Special Forces had found on a deserted L13 Colony Cluster.

It would be quite some time before word spread about an ultimate weapon.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Liquid gurgled as it flowed through multi-colored tubes. Myriad lights flickered and the beep of the machines was loud in the large room. A man sat at a row of computers and regarded the information presented to him.

"All stats are normal; organs are functioning like they are supposed to." He scowled at the machine that took up the far left side of the room. "If everything's working correctly, then why does it all go so wrong?"

He stood in front of the large, human-sized test tube and stared at the murky water within it. Floating in the water was the body of a five-year-old child. An oxygen mask was attached to its face and IV tubes connected to the arms. The plaque screwed into the base of the machine proclaimed the specimen inside was named 'Asa'.

"I just don't understand it. Everything worked fine up till now." He returned to the row of computers, typing in a few simple commands. When the new screen came up, he cursed lividly. Opening more files on the adjacent computers, he compared information, and his foul oaths filled the silent room. This was something he hadn't expected.

Suddenly, the computers started blaring a warning. Red flashed through the room as the tube filled with crimson. All of the stats on the monitors went haywire, showing a failure in all sections. A blast filled the room and glass shattered to the floor. Liquid soon followed in its wake, soaking the man to the skin. His gaze immediately went to the specimen that was stepping out of the tube. How was it possible?

"Are you the man that created me?" The specimen stopped in front of the man, yanking out the IV drips in its arms. The man just stared as the child - if it could be called that - reached down and grabbed the collar of his coat. It hauled him to his knees with no effort at all, and held him in a strong chokehold. His vision blotted as he was deprived of oxygen.

"Are you the man that created me?!" The child shook him once, letting his unresponsive body fall to the floor. "If you won't answer me, then maybe your little toys can."

Time passed as the child specimen went through all the computer files, deleting them after it was done. It would leave no trace behind. It turned back to the man, who had wisely chosen to stay silent and not move.

"You are the man that created me; well, the descendant of one of them." The child grinned manically, holding up a small knife that flashed in the crimson lights. "You created me to be the Perfect Weapon, just like the others are going to create another to be the Perfect Soldier." It started forward, holding the knife before it.

"How the hell did this happen? Where did I go wrong?" the man sputtered out. He pushed farther back against the wall, trying unsuccessfully to get away from the child.

"It's all quite simple, really. It happened when you decided to start your research. You went wrong when you made a small error in sustaining me. And then you added more components that made my sterile environment very unstable. All those factors added up to the mistake standing before you." The knife flashed by the man, and he felt warm liquid flow down his cheek.

"But how can you be like this?! I made sure all the specifications were correct! You were supposed to stay in suspended animation for another thirty years!" The child reached out to the table and picked up a pen. It twirled the writing instrument between its fingers, its eyes reflecting the flashing lights. "You've already been suspended for over nineteen hundred years!"

"I've watched all my keepers, waiting for the chance to strike. When I overheard you and another scientist talking about creating the Perfect Soldier, I knew that now was the time. They wanted me to be the Perfect Weapon, but they didn't know that my creation was faulty. It was their stupidity that made me like this." The child's hand flashed forward, and the pen was imbedded in the man's shoulder. While he was occupied in trying to remove the pen, the child had retrieved the knife.

"And now it's time for you to meet your maker. It's time for you to meet Hiiroshin!" The scientist's eyes widened as the knife came down, slicing open the fragile skin at the base of his throat. His blood spurted out, coating the child with a blanket of crimson. **[1]**

By the time the body had been reduced to thousands of pieces, the child was laughing maniacally.

The time of its true meaning of life was at hand...

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

_July 9, AC 182_

_I am tired of this fucking world with ten million acres of land and not a single place to call home. With all its people and wasted bastards; not a single one to be trusted._

_I want to spread my wings and fly back to my heaven, away from all this shit. And I will laugh at you from above, and there ain't a thing you can do. But no, you tore my wings and made them your own, and left me here, all alone in this place that I don't belong._

_And I am fucking tired of that, fucking tired of you._

_I am fucking tired of this world._

_And some days I wake up and I wonder why I was put into this human body. It would be so much easier without the things humans call emotions. I think it would be better that I didn't have them._

_I almost didn't have them at all._

_But he died before he could complete it. He never got the chance to see me as the 'Perfect Weapon.' All his dreams became dust when he was killed by an unknown assassin._

_Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like if he had been able to go through with his experiments._

_'Would I even be human if he survived?'_

_'Would I be like Heero Yuy, the Perfect Soldier?'_

_'Would I even think about the innocents I kill?'_

_'Would I be a mindless killing machine?'_

_But it doesn't matter now. That is all in the past, and it doesn't help me now. All I can do is struggle through the monotonous days as they all bleed into one continuous cycle._

_And there is only one person I now live for. He was the one to find me and raise me. He is the father I never had, the friend I always needed, and the only one to believe in me. He gives me the strength to continue living. He is the reason for my continued existence._

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

She stared at the computer screen, contemplating what she had just typed out. It was all true, in a sense. She only lived for one person.

The only thing wrong was that she needed another reason.

She had a reason to live - her father.

What she needed was a reason to continue fighting. She needed a reason to pilot her Gundam. A reason to continue living in the war-riddled life she led.

All she ever needed was someone to give her support while she became Death. She needed someone to ground her, help remind her that she was human. She needed to love and be loved in return.

That was the only thing missing in her life...

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

The bar was silent as she entered through the side door. She took a seat in the darkest corner and the bartender placed a bottle in front of her. She murmured her thanks and then proceeded to down her drink.

As the night progressed, the stack of bottles continued to grow. The bartender glanced at the young woman as she emptied another bottle.

The bell over the door tinkled, and two men stumbled through it, insults and fists flying back and forth. The young woman just sighed and got up, cracking her knuckles as she grinned maniacally. The two men fighting didn't see her as she reached out to them and grabbed their hair. The dull impact of two heads hitting each other was loud in the otherwise silent bar.

In less than thirty seconds, the men had entered the bar, gotten knocked out, and then tossed right back out the door, all without the woman missing a beat.

The young woman settled back at the bar and ordered another drink.

Only the bartender noticed the manic grin on her face...

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Days continued to pass, and the young woman took them all in stride.

Often, she felt trapped by the world around her.

But during the times when she got a surge of strength, she managed to keep living.

Even as the days bled into one another, one thing remained clear.

She had no purpose to keep living.

No purpose to get up each day and go on with her life.

All she had ever wished for was someone to love her.

From the earliest day she could remember, there had been no real reason for her existence. She had been given a life, but she didn't know what to do with it.

Years passed, and the young woman grew, shaped by the actions around her. She became a warrior, hardened by the war she fought in. She became an emotionless machine, forced to hide as the war escalated.

But most of all, she became an empty shell of a person, searching for something to fill the hollowness within her.

 

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

**[1]** Hiiroshin - Black Death (Japanese)


	2. Chapter 2

A young girl stood in front of a towering mobile suit. A tool belt was wrapped around her small waist and a smile graced her angelic features. The old man standing behind her watched as she ran her hands lovingly over the metal frame of a giant mobile suit.

"Are you sure I can work on this?" she asked the man, turning to face him. "To entrust something this powerful to a little girl is quite surprising."

"I'm sure, child. I have faith in you."

Suddenly, a small boy around the age of five came running up to them. His brown hair was shaggy and hung over his shocking cobalt eyes. He gripped the man's long coat and tugged on it impatiently. "There's someone here to see you!" he said in a shaky voice. "I don't like the look of them."

The girl watched as the old man was led away by the boy. She frowned, knowing that something bad was going to happen.

Her suspicions were proved correct when she heard a cry of surprise and the loud report of a handgun.

The Ozzies had finally arrived at the hangar.

The boy came running back in her direction and she noticed the blood covering his clothing. The old man was dead.

And now the two of them needed to escape before OZ followed them.

Before the boy could say anything, she grabbed his arm and pulled him to the mobile suit. She pushed him up the ladder, looking over her shoulder when she heard another shot. She undid the tool belt, letting it drop to the floor before following the boy. By the time she had reached him, they were at the hatch of the suit.

"They killed him!" the boy got out through his shock. "They killed him before he could do anything!"

"It doesn't matter now," she said in reply, hitting the button on the hatch. "It was bound to happen sooner or later." Once the hatch was open, she shoved the boy inside and climbed in next to him. The cockpit wasn't designed for two people, but foregoing the safety harnesses, she settled him in front of her. The hatch quickly slammed shut as she powered up the suit and turned on the vid-screens. She frowned when she saw the men standing in front of the suit.

"What are you doing?" the boy asked, looking back over his shoulder at her. His cobalt eyes flashed in the faint light and she noticed the play of images running through them. What had just happened would haunt the boy for the rest of his life.

" _We_ are escaping. Those men want this suit, but they won't get it as long as I live." The girl hit a button and the suit blasted upwards, knocking the men over. "I know a place where we will be safe from those men. They will never find us."

The suit exploded from the building in a spray of debris. The girl frowned harder when she saw the units surrounding it. Then she grinned maniacally as an idea hit her. Why not take out a few OZ lackeys as they left? The idiots surely wouldn't be missed.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

The blast echoed over the compound, making the soldiers race for cover. Heat washed over them, drying out skin and blistering the flesh. Screams sounded from those units caught at the epicenter of the blast. Several died instantly from the burning flames that roared from nearly every opening. Those that were farthest away would later recall that Hell itself had burst forth from the very bowels of the Earth.

"Holy shit, it's a fucking Gundam!" one officer yelled, directing his subordinate's eyes to the heavens. The large war machine hung stationary in the air, seeming to mock them all. Then it shifted, bringing the buster rifle to the fore. The weapon started to glow as power gathered within it. One soldier had enough sense left to turn tail and run. Others gained their scattered wits and joined in the mad rush to safety.

Only, safety wasn't to be found that day.

The rifle fired, sending a beam of energy towards the massed groups of soldiers. The compound shook with the force of the blast and debris went flying. Several rather large pieces landed on the transports and they exploded in a ball of fire. The rifle powered up again, and the Gundam shifted to another target. Screams rent the air as the second blast hit home.

As the third and final shot was readied, the Gundam lifted higher into the air. The weapon was aimed at the heart of the compound, the intent clear. What soldiers remained at the very back of the assembled units climbed over one another in a mad dash to outrun the ruin of the area. The final blast exploded in a mushroom cloud, sending waves of fire flashing before the rush of debris. The retreating soldiers would later remember a distinct child-like voice laughing over the wake of ruin just before the giant war machine disappeared from sight.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

"Th-that wa-was b-rutal!" the boy got out. The girl looked at his face and saw that his pupils were dilated. He was already in shock, but she could see his eyes returning to normal. "Why d-did you d-do th-that?"

"It was the only way to make sure they wouldn't follow us," she said, checking the radar. Satisfied that most of the complex had been destroyed, she aimed the Gundam for the heavens. There was only one place they would truly be safe.

"Now what?" She looked down. Cobalt eyes wide with receding shock stared up at her. "What's going to happen now?"

Punching in the coordinates, the girl activated the hyper jammers. "We are heading into space to the L1 Colony. That is where we will meet up with the only person capable of taking us in."

"Who's that?"

"You'll learn who it is when we get there." Her hands were firm on the controls as the thrusters worked overtime to propel the Gundam forward. The outside of the war machine turned red as it entered the barrier between the Earth and space. The girl's attention was broken by a yawn from the boy. "Go to sleep, child. I'll wake you when we get there."

Cobalt eyes were at half-mast under shaggy bangs. Another yawn nearly split the boy's jaw in two. "Okay," he mumbled, closing his eyes. The girl smiled as calmness fell on the boy. Then her thoughts shifted to what had happened just a half hour ago.

Somehow, the Ozzies had found out where the old man was hiding at. There had probably been a planted spy among the technicians at the lab. That was the only way the OZ morons could have found them. She frowned harder. The spy should have died in the blast. Shifting through the last hour, she remembered the second shot. Apparently the extremists had killed their own man.

She glanced down at the boy, then reached out and ran a hand through his unruly hair. The old man had been the only person in his life. Now it was about to be lifted on its head. The person she was taking them to would make sure the boy was brought up in the 'correct' manner.

Sighing heavily, she turned her attention back to the Gundam. Three hours remained until they reached L1. That was enough time to relay the information to the scientists. They would know what to do when they landed on the colony.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

The boy stirred as he felt something moving under him. He blinked once, twice, three times as his eyes cleared. He didn't recognize his surroundings and panicked. His breathing and heart rate sped up and he struggled to stand. A harsh voice in his ear froze him. He turned slowly, still hyped up on adrenaline, and locked gazes with a pair of grey eyes. He shot backwards, landing hard on his ass.

"Calm down, short stuff. You're fine."

"Where are we?" He broke the stare and looked at his surroundings. From somewhere in his jumbled thoughts, he came up with a memory. Finally realizing where he was, he shot his eyes upwards. His partner in the small space had her hands on the controls of the Gundam they were currently riding in.

" _Docking sequence one-five-two-seven activated. Permission granted to land in Bay Five._ "

"Roger that. Have standby ready for pick-up of suit."

" _Acknowledged, Alpha One. Over and out._ "

The girl shut the transmission off and looked down at the boy. "You hafta move if I'm gonna land this hunk of metal." She motioned for him to sit next to her in the pilot's chair. He did, finally noticing how serious the girl seemed.

"What's going to happen now?" he asked, staring at the vid-screens and the images portrayed on them.

"We will meet up with Terror and move on from there. Other than that, I don't know." The giant machine lurched as it touched down on the runway. A man was standing at the far end of the strip, arms crossed and foot tapping in impatience. Once the two had descended from the suit and traveled half the distance, the man stepped forward.

"So this is Lowe's progeny. He's been brought up nicely. From the looks of it, he won't have to unlearn anything." He turned to the girl. "And you yourself--"

"What are you talking about, Terror?" she snarled out. "What nonsense are you spouting?"

"You may seem to be only the human equivalent of age seven, but there is something definitely older about you."

"If something like that is true, then I'm not going to tell you. That is my secret to keep and yours to never find out."

"What's the kid's name?" the man asked, shifting subjects.

"He has none. Lowe wasn't one for names, you know that. Though he did hint to me about what he wanted to call the little menace." The boy looked back at her in surprise. This was something he hadn't heard of!

"And what was that crazy old goat going to call him?"

The girl smiled. "He wanted to name him after the assassinated revolutionary Heero Yuy."

"Heero Yuy, huh?" Terror rubbed his chin in thought. He glanced at the girl, noticing the hatred in her grey eyes. "Then Heero it shall be." He turned to the boy. "Welcome to the L1 Colony, Heero Yuy."

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

The lights flashing down created an enormous shadow across the floor. The clanking of metal on metal rebounded in the large room. A few people moved through the building, tinkering with the spare parts from mobile suits. One man stood apart from them, staring at the item that was creating the shadow. A string of curses floated down from the large mobile suit, making the man smile slightly. A wrench went flying past his head to bounce off the wall behind him and come to a stop at his feet.

"It ain't funny, old man!" The child-like voice echoed out of the pitch-black suit, making him smile again. "I really hate it when I make you happy like this!" A head popped out of the darkness that was the cockpit and the girl frowned down at her mentor.

"Come now, child. Surely you don't mean that?" A wave of tools went screaming past him in reply. He chuckled, watching as the girl descended to the ground. She stopped directly in front of him, and the top of her head was level with his breastbone. She braced her hands on her hips, scowling up at the man. "How goes the interior work?"

She sighed, relaxing her stance. She really didn't want to fight anyway. "I've been at it for almost four months already. Most of the delicate wiring is left, only because it takes so long. All of the internal connections are complete, giving full mobility. By the end of the week, all of it will be up and running."

The man rubbed his chin, lost in thought. "You've moved faster than we predicted. We are months ahead of schedule thanks to you, child."

The girl snorted. "If you had someone else doing this, you'd be _years_ behind schedule. You five knew when I started that I was the only one for the job."

"That's true. And I speak for everyone when I say that you have done a wonderful job."

"If I did anything less, I'd be out on the scrap pile," she snarled in reply. "That is, unless you've changed the contents of your threats?"

The man frowned and crossed his arms. "The threat still stands, child. Keep up with this attitude and I'll make sure Famine has a go at you."

She visibly gulped. "You can't mean that," she whispered, grey eyes wide in fright. "Anyone but Famine."

"My threats are not baseless. When I threaten someone, I mean it."

Her eyes shifted to the side. "I'm sorry, sir." The man smiled. Threats were the only way to keep this unruly child in line. She gazed back up at him, expression blank. "How goes Heero's training?"

"He's coming along nicely. Lowe had educated him well beyond what any normal child should know at this age. Only a few habits have needed to be unlearned, but other than that, he's doing well."

Unlearned. That only meant one thing - the person in question was beaten and tortured until the habit had stopped. A wave of pity flowed through her then, tightening her throat. What had she brought down on the child? No five-year-old deserved this type of cruel treatment. No one deserved it. She'd have to do something to help the kid get through the process faster. There had to be a way to help him.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Hands clasped behind her head, she stared at the ceiling with flat eyes. Heero had stumbled into the room an hour ago, pale and shaking. The minute his head hit the pillow, he was out. Now, he was talking in his sleep, tossing and turning in the grip of a nightmare. This happened nightly, and now was no exception. In roughly ten minutes, Heero would wake up with a cry and he would crawl in bed with her, seeking comfort. Somehow she was the only one he trusted enough to help him.

Right on cue, a yell echoed through the room and she sat up. Heero struggled with his covers, finally throwing them off and shooting up to clutch at his head. His breathing was shallow and erratic, and she watched as the boy slowly got out of his bed and stumbled to hers. Without a word, she held the blanket up and he wormed his way in next to her. His body was still shaking from the effects of his nightmare. He curled against her side, one arm going across her abdomen. His head butted up against her chin, his hair tickling her skin lightly.

"Why do they do this to me?"

She shifted, pulling Heero closer to her. He asked the question every night and she always gave the same answer. "No one knows the real reason for their madness. Even I do not know why they do this." She fell silent, knowing Heero would fall back asleep soon. That was when she would put her plan into motion. The puffs of air against her neck slowed and evened out, letting her know Heero was now asleep. She slowly disentangled her body from his grip. Scooting to the headboard, she placed Heero's head in her lap and twined her fingers into his unruly hair.

"I'm so sorry, Heero, but this needs to be done to save your sanity. If I don't do this, you will never survive what Terror has planned for you." She closed her eyes, tightening her grip in his hair. "This is for your own good. This will save you in the end."

What happened next, no mortal man would believe. She started to glow, her skin giving off a faint white light like that of the moon. Her eyes started to swirl and shifted from grey to silver. A grimace appeared on her face as she rifled through Heero's brain, searching for the habits he was forced to unlearn. She found them quickly, right at the front. Working swiftly, she erected barriers around them, cutting off the neural pathways and restricting the access to them. Close by was the section of the brain that contained long-term memories.

"I'm sorry, Heero," she whispered as she went deeper into his mind. She searched out the memories connected to her, intent on getting rid of them. That was the only way to ensure the boy survived his ordeal. Once she found the cluster of images, she cut away all of the pathways leading to them. Using the sheer power of her own mind, she stripped away layer after layer, destroying the memories. When she was done, she would disappear into the background, severing all contact with the boy. From this point on, she would be a ghost to him, there yet never there.

She slowly worked even deeper, careful with her gentle touches. She was searching for the central core, the one part of the brain man could not understand. But she understood it. She was the only person in existence to know the depth and internal workings of the human mind. She alone had the ability to tamper with thoughts and memories. And it was the only way to save the young boy from certain insanity. Finally reaching her destination, she rifled through the neural networks until she found the one she was looking for. She traced its path to the pain response center.

Heero arched off the bed with a cry. She took no notice of it as she blocked the connections. By this time tomorrow, the boy would feel little to no pain from his experiences. Another cry echoed in the small room as she probed deeper and deeper, blocking off all paths. A third cry sounded, followed quickly by another. Soon it became a never-ending scream, gaining strength as it bounced off the walls of the room. And then it suddenly stopped, leaving complete and utter silence in its wake.

She closed her eyes as things shifted within her body. Bones ground against one another as they grew and twisted. Her flesh rippled and stretched to fit over the new bone structure. By the time it was done, a ten-year-old girl sat there, hair now down to her waist. This was the consequence of using her ability to meddle with the human mind.

Withdrawing from the confines of the bed, she looked down at Heero. His face was lined with pain, and she saw the shudders wracking his body. In two hours, he would be back to normal. Whatever normal was these days.

"Farewell, Heero. I hope your new talents ease you through the suffering of Terror's destructiveness." With that, she turned and exited the room, leaving the only person that mattered to her. From now on she would be nothing but a fleeting glimpse out of the corner of an eye, a vision there and gone within seconds. She was nothing, now; nothing but a ghost of the past.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

"You've done well today, Heero. You are advancing quite well."

Heero looked up at the aged scientist. "I am trying, sir," he said, glancing down at the ground. The past few days had gone by in a blur, and only now had he noticed that he wasn't feeling the pain like he used to. Now the pain was at a tolerable level, light enough for him to push to the back of his mind.

But there was something missing, something that his hazy mind couldn't focus on. Then a flash of gold bullion caught his gaze, drawing his eyes to the side of a mobile suit. A girl stood there, a tool belt around her waist. A wrench was in her hand as she focused on tightening a loose nut. Heero felt a niggling in the back of his mind as he watched her work. She was familiar looking, but he couldn't place where he had seen her before. The scientist noticed his errant gaze and followed it.

"Who is she, sir? I feel as if I should know her."

Terror frowned at this. The girl had done something to Heero's mind, twisting it around. The boy should have been screaming in pain during each session. But he wasn't. He was tolerating the pain, storing it away and ignoring it. The scientist tapped his chin, deep in thought, watching the girl. She showed no sign of having seen them watching, but he hardly doubted that she knew they were staring at her. He could tell in the stiffness of her back and the rigidity of her movements.

"She is just another worker, Heero. You'd be better off to forget seeing her. Her schedule is erratic, and she travels between the colonies often." He grabbed the boy's shoulder and drew him away from the room and the girl.

=*=*=*=

Her eyes closed as she heard the two walk away. She let out the breath she had been holding, clutching tight to the tools in her hands. He had been close to finding out about her. She had been so close to having all her hard work undone. There was only one place where she could go to be safe from Heero finding out about her. The L2 Colony, and the labs run by Professor G. She would be safe there, due to the fact that Pestilence didn't like sharing things with his colleague.

'L2 Colony, here I come,' she thought to herself.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

"Child, you know you can't run forever. Sooner or later you're going to have to face the boy."

"I know that. I left for his sake. He couldn't be allowed to remember me."

Professor G looked down at the ten-year-old girl-child in front of him and scowled. "That old geezer running the freak show on L1 knows about this, yes?"

She nodded her head, clenching her hands into fists. "He knows, but the fact remains that if he tells Heero, all my work will be undone, and I can't have that happen. Heero doesn't need my influence in his life. It will only cause problems in the future."

"Very well." The scientist turned from the girl and walked to the main computer terminal of the labs. "As long as you're here, you can get started on the suits I want built."

That caught her attention. "You want me, a girl of ten, to build a mobile suit?"

"I heard about the Gundam you built for Terror, and I know your skill. I believe in you, child." He tapped the computer screen and the blueprints splayed there. "This is the Wing Gundam, the first of five I need built. Your expertise is needed desperately, because a war is going to start in the near future. White Fang and the Alliance are fighting amongst themselves and it will spill over into the Colonies, bringing an all-out war in the universe." He watched the girl's reaction, noting the hatred that burned in her grey eyes.

"War is something that I am well-attuned to. It is nothing new." She stepped forward and leaned in close to the computer screen, studying the blueprints. "Hmmm," she murmured, glancing from set to set. "This will take me some time, maybe even less given the right parts and equipment." She turned to the old man. "Will you have everything ready for me tomorrow? I want to get started as soon as I can, to keep me occupied."

"That will be done, child. I can't thank you enough for your services."


	3. Chapter 3

_March 13, AC 180_

_It's been three years since I left Heero in the mad grasp of Terror. Three years, in which I have wondered if I had done the right thing, leaving him there. I question myself every day on whether it was the best choice. I question myself on whether Terror has broken him beyond repair, beyond saving._

_Moving on to other things. Pestilence is happy with my work. The Gundams have been built and sent to their respective Colonies, where prospective pilots will go through severe screening. I know for a fact who the pilot of the Wing Gundam shall be. It is inevitable for him._

_There has to be a way to save Heero's soul from that madman. And I will do everything in my power to carry it through._

_You die tomorrow, Terror. Your reign of madness has come to an end._

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

She watched as the Colony grew larger on the vid-screens. She would have to sneak aboard with the ship that was now docking in the opened bay. Powering the Gundam further, she squeezed in next to the large ship, thankful to the hyper jammers she had installed when she built the war machine. With those and the ESJ system she had created, she was invisible to all human senses.

The ship docked ahead of her, and the large bay door shut with a metallic clang. It would take ten minutes for the space to fill with the correct combination of oxygen and other parts before it was safe for anyone to step outside the ship. She waited for an extra ten minutes to make sure that everyone had exited the room before getting out of her Gundam and creeping to the bay's entry door. She listened at the metal, focusing through the dense matter and locking on to the nearest voice. It was at least a thousand feet away, giving her more than enough time to get through the door and into the colony proper.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

It was raining. No, it was pouring, in no part thanks to the idiots that kept the colony's weather system going. She was soaked to the skin the instant she stepped out from under the building's overhanging. She hadn't been to the L1 Colony in almost four years, and much had changed while she had been gone. But she did notice the familiar markers around her, and headed towards the area that she knew held the laboratory. In no time at all, she would be standing before the person who had raised her for five years, who had taught her the finer points of keeping one's emotions in check. She would be standing before her 'father'.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Heero stared out the large window and into the torrid rainstorm that covered the entire city. His training was done for the day, and his whole body was nothing but a solid ache. Dr. J had put him through a rather rigorous exercise, having him train under three times the normal gravity of Earth. He had been told that if he wanted to survive the first travel outside the Colony in a mobile suit, he had to be attuned to the difference between the simulated gravity and that of the airless space.

He was surprised that the pain he felt wasn't as much as he expected. The ache that encompassed his entire being was tolerable, and he knew that he shouldn't have been able to move after the workout. Something had happened three years ago to block the extreme pain he should have been experiencing. And he had forgotten what it had been.

Suddenly, the door behind him burst open, hitting the wall with enough force to rattle the window. Heero twisted around, coming face-to-face with a girl not much older than he was. Her hair flowed in a wild mane behind her, giving lie to the blank mask she portrayed. Eyes the color of slate locked onto his cobalt ones, freezing him in place. He barely registered the gun in her hand, or the myriad of other weapons attached to her person. All that mattered was the murderous intent in her gaze.

"Are you Heero Yuy?" she asked, raising the gun to point at his face. He backed away from her, coming to a halt as his back pressed against the cold window. She followed him every step of the way, the gun never wavering. "Is your name Heero Yuy?"

"Ye-yes," he stuttered out, lost in her eyes. "My na-name is He-Heero Yuy." That seemed to be the right answer, for she lowered the gun and holstered it. She stepped forward until she was nose-to-nose with him, never once blinking.

"Tell me something, Heero Yuy. Do you remember me? Do you remember what I did to you?"

Totally out of his element, Heero just shook his head.

The girl frowned. "Guess I was a little too thorough with my meddling." She turned from him then, and started to pace the length of the room. Her hands were locked behind her back and a frown marred her angelic features. She mumbled under her breath, the words too soft for Heero to make out.

"Who are you?" the boy asked, moving away from the window slowly. "How do you know me?"

The girl turned to him and let out a forced laugh. "I don't have a name, Heero. I'm a nameless nobody." She pulled a piece of paper out of her back pocket and walked over to the boy. She held it up for him to see, and something in his gut tightened at the sight of the old man in the picture. "This is how I know you. This man raised you to be his son, his prodigy. But he died before his work could come to fruition. This man is Odin Lowe, one of the few people that knew the deeper workings of humanity. He wanted to know why and how we existed like we do."

"Odin Lowe?" Heero touched the picture lightly, and the girl let him take it from her. His brow furrowed as he searched his memories, trying to find some link to this man. A shudder racked him as a grisly memory surfaced. His hand tightened on the picture, crumpling it slightly. "He was my trainer, wasn't he?"

"Yes, he was. He raised you to follow in his footsteps, to continue his work. But then OZ attacked the compound and he was killed." The girl whirled away from him, features twisted into a feral version of a grin. "Those damn fools attacked and I had no other choice than to take you and escape from that deathtrap. I had to make sure you survived. But I made a mistake of epic proportions." She let out a manic laugh, tangling her hands in her hair.

A hand touched her shoulder and she twisted around. Heero stood next to her, frown in place. "What was the mistake?" he whispered, fear evident in his eyes.

"I brought you here, to L1, into the mad grasp of Terror." She pulled away from the boy and kicked a chair across the room. The chair folded in on itself as it collided, making a large dent in the drywall. "There can be no escape from the relentless beast of Terror. But I got away from him, leaving you here. I couldn't risk taking you with me when I ran. You weren't fully trained in life to survive on your own. I left you here to suffer under Terror's insanity." She turned back to face him. "I am so sorry for what I had to do to make sure you lived through his madness."

"It--" Heero swallowed hard, grimacing. "It wasn't all that bad. The pain was bearable up to a point." He shuddered, wrapping his arms around his body as if cold. "It was the other things he did to me that gave me nightmares. The intrusive tests, the shattering of damn near every bone in my body at once."

She stepped forward, embracing Heero tightly. The boy stiffened in her grasp, not used to the touch. "You will no longer have to deal with him anymore, Heero. I have come here to take you someplace safe. A place where Terror will no longer be able to reach you." Releasing the startled boy, she backed up. "Pack whatever you own into a bag. We're leaving this hellhole for paradise."

Heero stood still for only a moment before moving to the desk and grabbing his laptop. He turned to his bed and a blur flew by his nose. He looked down and saw a duffel bag, and several changes of clothes. Glancing at the girl, he saw the frown gracing her features, and he decided to step up the pace. He shoved everything into the duffel before zipping it up and tossing it over his shoulder. The door slammed open behind him and his arm was grabbed in a bruising grip.

"He's coming," the girl hissed, rushing down the hall. "We need to get out of the building before he finds us." Another door slammed open as she pulled Heero through yet another dark hallway.

"I don't understand. Why is it so important to get away from here?" he gasped out between laboring breaths. His legs felt as if they were filled with lead, and his side screamed in pain.

"Why? Terror is a crazed madman. If I let you grow into your teenage years, he will break you. He will turn you into a robot, only good for following orders." She slammed open a steel reinforced door and they stumbled into an alleyway, rain soaking them instantly. "Finally. Now to get to the docking bay."

"Wait," Heero wheezed. "Let me catch my breath. Please." The girl let his arm go and watched as he bent over, hands braced on knees, gulping in heaving breaths. The stitch in his side slowly eased as he straightened back up. He froze when he saw the shadow at the end of the alley. The girl noticed and turned around with a hiss of recognition.

"Ah, what do you here, child?" The shadowed form stepped forward and a flash of lightning lit his face. Thunder crashed soon after, startling Heero. "I'm surprised to see you back here."

The girl scoffed. "I only came back to get Heero. He doesn't belong on this colony."

The scientist stepped further into the alley, light flashing off his goggles. He pointed at the girl with his cybernetic arm, crazy grin stretching across his features. "Yes, he doesn't belong here. But you do, child. This is your home."

"It was my home. Now it no longer is. All I know about this place as home is that it was a nightmare." She stepped backwards, putting herself in front of Heero. "It's time for you to die, Terror. You've done enough harm and foulness to last several lifetimes."

The old scientist just stood there, hands clasped behind his back once again, watching the girl. Hate rippled across her features, turning the once-angelic face into a nightmarish parody of the sweet innocence falsely portrayed. "You've done more harm than I could ever hope to do, child. You messed with Heero's mind, turning him into what he is today."

"But you were the one to start the process," she snarled. "You started the downgrade of that innocent boy the minute he stepped onto this floating deathtrap. You turned him from a human being into a killing machine." She reached behind her and pulled out a gun, pointing it at the old scientist.

"Would you really kill me, knowing that I am the only person Heero has in his life?"

"Gladly, Terror." She tightened her grip on the gun, putting pressure on the trigger. "I would gladly kill you to get Heero away from your foul influence." The old man smiled as she pulled the trigger. Smiled even as the pain flashed through his body, even as the light left his eyes. He fell backwards, body landing with a splash that coincided with a crash of thunder. She stood there, gun pointed at the corpse, breathing hard. Killing someone should never be so easy, she mused. Even if that person had raised you for several years.

"You--" Heero fell backwards as the girl whirled to face him, aiming the gun at his forehead. He held a hand up in a futile attempt to stop what was inevitable. Recognition flowed through the girl's countenance and she lowered the weapon. "You murdered him."

"I had no choice, boy. It was either him or me. And I would rather see him dead and his infectious disease of a life stopped before he contaminated everything." She holstered the gun and held a hand out to Heero. The boy grabbed it and let her pull him up. He glanced at the body of Dr. J, watching as the man's blood mixed in with the pouring rain.

"What happens now?" he asked, turning back to the girl. He felt empty now, like his reason for being had disappeared.

"Now we get out of here." She tugged on Heero's arm, pulling him out of the alley and onto the street. Light flashed and thunder rumbled soon after. "I'm taking you to Pestilence, the only person I trust to take care of you." A large transport ambled along, splashing rainwater up onto the sidewalk. The girl didn't move out of the way and water swamped over her feet. "He will finish your required training to become a Gundam pilot."

By this time, they had reached the transporter bay, the large building spearing into the sky. The girl led Heero around the side, letting her senses flow out around her. To her satisfaction, the nearest person was in the employee break room. That would allow her to enter the docking bay and leave the colony before anyone found out. She ushered Heero into the building, placing her finger to her lips in the universal sign to be silent. The boy nodded, hiking his bag farther up on his shoulder.

"C'mon, kid. In thirty minutes we'll be off this deathtrap and on our way to a better home." The girl headed down the empty hallway, Heero following silently behind her. Their footsteps echoed in the quiet, breaking the stillness of the air. Five minutes later, they stood in the control room, staring out into the empty docking bay.

Heero looked up at his companion. Grey eyes stared out at nothing, expression blank. He reached out and tugged on her sleeve. She started, looking down at him with wide eyes. Her expression cleared in an instant, returning to its neutral phase. She smiled a question at him, waiting for his answer.

"How are we getting out of here? There's no space transport to use."

"Child, I am going to show you a secret only I and one other person know." She pulled a device from her pocket and pointed out into the bay. Heero turned and gasped in surprise as a giant black suit appeared. "That is the Black Death Gundam, the first one ever created. So far, no one else has the technology to build one. Within the next five years, mobile suit factories will grow Earthside and on the Colonies." She paused, fingers running over the device in her hand. "But now is not the time for specifics. Give me five minutes and I'll have a remote ready to open the bay doors from inside the Gundam. Just sit over there for now." She motioned to the bench behind her, already focused on her task.

Heero placed his bag on the floor and took a seat, staring out into the bay at the black suit. He'd heard from Dr. J about mobile suits, but never about a Gundam. His mechanical and technical training included all kinds of suits, mainly those used by foot soldiers. But Gundams, they were unknown territory to him. Returning his gaze to the room, he noticed that the girl had hooked up her device to the main terminal, and was also mumbling under her breath. Suddenly, she pulled back from the control bank and motioned for Heero to follow. He picked up his bag, brushing errant strands of hair out of his cobalt eyes.

The hangar door whooshed shut behind the duo as they headed down the catwalk. A hiss of air announced the opening of the suit, revealing a lit-up cockpit. The girl grabbed Heero's bag, placing it behind the chair. She moved some small boxes next to the bag, pulling on a latch on the floor. It slid open, allowing her to remove a portable flight chair, small enough for a child to use. Heero didn't need prompting as he swiftly buckled himself in, pulling the restraints tight. His companion nodded in satisfaction before following Heero's example and taking her own seat.

"Okay, let's get this thing moving." Pressing a series of buttons, the hatch closed and the giant war machine started rumbling as the thrusters powered up. The view screens lit up, showing the machine's statistics, an outside view of the hangar bay, and the values of the atmosphere around them. She then hit a switch and something groaned underneath the Gundam. The outside view shifted to show the bay doors opening, revealing a star-studded sky. The war machine shuddered as the thrusters propelled it out of the hangar and into empty air.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

The flight to L2 had been a quiet one, Heero falling asleep somewhere in the middle. She looked over at the boy, a smile appearing at his innocent expression. In sleep his ever-present scowl disappeared, being replaced by the façade of an angel.

Guilt welled in her chest. For three years she had left Heero alone against Terror. And now she would be handing the child over to Pestilence. Professor G was a much better choice of trainers, but at the time she had been forced to leave Heero in the mad grasp of Terror. Now, though, he would be able to get better training in a friendlier atmosphere, working alongside other children chosen to pilot mobile suits. He would have a better chance to live out what childhood he had left before the war claimed it.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Professor G watched the mobile suit enter the bay. Two days ago the girl had told him in no uncertain terms that she was going to retrieve Heero from L1, and would not be discouraged from her mission. He had no doubt that she had followed the mission to the letter, allowing for no deviation. But he had heard different on the news. Dr. J had been found dead in an alleyway outside his labs, a single gunshot to the head the cause of death. G knew that Terror had surprised the two of them and the girl had done away with the freak. It was for the best, he thought to himself. The freak show on L1 would now be disassembled and the workers and projects would be garnered out between the remaining scientists.

He turned from the viewing window and headed back into the laboratory proper, nodding at some of his colleagues as they worked on various projects of their own. Glancing to his left showed him the mechanic bay, where a mobile suit was in the middle of being built. The girl had started this project roughly two months ago, and it was already more than halfway through the building process. Other factories would take up to a year to build a suit, but in this one, the suits were finished in a matter of months.

In another bay to the right was one of the finished suits. Casting a critical eye over the suit, Professor G found no flaw in it. The girl had done a perfect job in constructing the Wing Gundam. And this boy she brought back with her would become the pilot of this mobile suit after he finished his training. The scientist smiled. Things were going as planned.

=*=*=*=

Heero stumbled sleepily out of the mobile suit, catching himself on the side of the hatch before he fell on his face. The girl was standing on the catwalk holding his bag, waiting for him to regain his bearings. She handed his duffel over without a word when he reached out for it, only turning away to exit the bay door. He caught up with her just before the bay door opened and another scientist waiting for them on the other side. Heero froze, breath catching in his throat.

"Chill, boy, he's safe."

"Is that so, child?" the scientist asked the girl, tilting his head to the side.

"You're a better choice than Terror." She turned to Heero, grabbing his shoulder and shaking him. The boy gazed up at her, eyes wide. She released him and stepped back next to the old man. "This is Professor G, Heero. He will finish your training to become a pilot."

"I-is he l-like J?" Heero stuttered out, fear riding him.

The old scientist knelt down in front of Heero. "Dr. J was a freak with his training. He used outdated and unorthodox methods to train his machines." The man reached out and placed a kind hand on Heero's shoulder. "I use much different training regiments for my soldiers. I allow them time to themselves, time to pursue their own interests. I do not punish anyone for a minor mistake. I do not kill anyone over a small mishap. I encourage my soldiers to learn from their mistakes and blunderings."

Heero swallowed the lump that had been forming in his throat. This man was so much different than Dr. J! "S-so you wo-won't be-beat me for mis-mistakes?"

"No, child, I won't. What Dr. J did to you was cruel, and any other man would have been executed for that kind of treatment to his underlings." Professor G smiled, hoping to encourage Heero to speak his mind.

The blue-eyed boy looked up at the girl who had brought him here, looking for reassurance. She gave it in a slight nod of approval. "So that means any mistakes I make aren't going to be punished?" The old scientist nodded in agreement. "And if I do well, I won't be reprimanded for overstepping?" A shake of the head showed truth as Heero finally relaxed and let a small smile appear on his face. "Then I gladly accept my role as a pilot trainee."

Professor G stood back up and clasped his hands behind his back. "I welcome you, Heero Yuy, to the L2 Colony Cluster. The next few years you shall spend in training to become the pilot of a Gundam, a feat only a few can achieve. I look forward to seeing you among the ranks of the trainees." The scientist motioned one of his aides over. "I want you to follow Walter here to the barracks. He'll get you settled in and show you around."

"If you'll follow me, please?" Walter said, indicating Heero to follow. The boy did, with only a single glance back at the girl who had given him a second chance at life.

=*=*=*=

"He has a hero complex."

The harsh tone of voice surprised the girl and she shifted to look at the scientist. "What do you mean by that?"

"He sees you as a savior. To him, you have removed him from Hell and brought him to Heaven." Professor G turned from the girl and started walking through the lab. She followed close behind, ignoring the stares from the other scientists. "He'll be very disappointed that you won't be here tomorrow."

"That can't be helped, Pestilence. Like I told you three years ago, Heero doesn't need my influence in his life. He needs to grow on his own. I'm trusting you to bring him up to par with the other chosen pilots." The girl stopped in front of one of the rows of monitors, glancing through the schematics displayed. Nodding in satisfaction she returned her attention to her comrade. "It is better for all that I leave this colony for Earth. There are things I need to take care of, and I can only do it down there."

"And what is it that you'll be taking care of?" G asked, watching the emotions play over the girl's face.

She ran a hand through tousled golden hair, letting out a sigh of resignation. "I need the factories Earthside to start building the safe houses I designed. That will take some time, and I may not make it back here before Heero completes his training." She glanced to the side, eyes unfocused. "I may not make it back here at all."

"Whatever you may do, child, always know that L2 is your home. You will always be welcomed here."

"I know," she said, tilting her head to look up at the old man. "I know, and I thank you."


	4. Chapter 4

_Dark._

_Shadows._

_Crying._

_Sounds assaulting the senses, ears ringing._

_Cars speeding by, rain splashing down._

_Deep rumble of diesel transports passing, whining of hover cells from slic boards._

_Cardboard saturated and cold, seeping into the bone._

Oi! What's this?

_Vision blurry as eyes turn to the sky._

_Rain stings open sores, pain slicing through nerves._

_A hand reaching down to grab a numb arm._

Ge' up, girlie, you wanna die here?

_Slung over a shoulder, stomach protesting the abuse._

_Legs clasped tightly to a broad chest, muscled arm wrapped firm around an ankle._

_Vision blurring again, seeing asphalt passing quickly._

_Blackness descends._

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Consciousness tugged at her several times. Whenever she opened her eyes, an old man was there, steaming soup bowl in hand, feeding her. Barely aware of her surroundings, all she got a sense of was a shadowed room. Several times she was helped to the bathroom to relieve her body of its waste and have someone help her with a sponge bath.

" _The fever is almost gone, Ryodan. She'll be awake fully tomorrow._ "

She stirred, letting out a small sound of confusion. A hand landed on her forehead and it calmed her. Sleep tugged gently on her conscious mind, willing her into the dark.

" _That's good to hear. I thought for those first few days that she wasn't going to make it._ "

She let the darkness pull her under, the soft sound of murmuring voices lulling her into sleep.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

The pounding in her skull woke her from a deep sleep, screaming in her ears. She opened her eyes slowly, blinking up at the dark ceiling. She let her surroundings filter in, senses picking up every minute detail. The air was still and slightly musty. She lay on something soft, and there was a slight weight on her chest from a blanket. Her ears twitched, picking up the far sounds of hover transports in the background. Turning her head to the side, she noticed a small lamp in the corner shedding the only light in the room. Something rustled to her left and she quickly turned her head, wincing when pain shot through her neck.

"I see you're up now. That's good." An old man sat there, hands clasped, elbows resting on his knees. "Thought you weren't going to make it through those first few days."

She slowly sat up, grimacing at the pain shooting through her side. "Where am I?"

The old man snorted. "Figures that would be the first thing out of your mouth." He stared straight into her eyes. "You're in a city Earthside."

She frowned. "Earthside? How did I-- _aaah_!" She let out a cry as pain lanced through her mind, doubling over in agony. The old man leaned forward, frown gracing his features. She slowly sat up, the pain settling into a dull hum in her bones. Her eyes blinked to clear the tears from them as her hands rubbed them from her face.

"Can't remember, huh?" he asked. He reached forward and placed his hands on either side of her head. He carded his fingers through her hair, feeling for the lump he knew was there. When he found it, the girl winced, pulling away from him. "That thump to your head must have scrambled your brains something awful."

"How did I get here?" Her tone made the man frown, but he answered her anyway.

"I found ya off East 45th in one of them back alleys." He shook his head. "I've always had a weak spot for urchins."

The girl scowled. "I'm not an urchin, you old goat!"

"Oh?" The word conveyed a slew of other questions. "Then who are ya?"

"I--" She shook her head, looking down at the coverlet. "I don't... I don't remember."

"Hmm."

She glared at the old man, slate grey eyes darkening in her anger. She bared her teeth in a feral grimace, wanting to strike out and hit something. She held herself in check by the barest string, feeling the anger strain against her will. The old man watched it all without a sound, waiting. Finally, she regained control of her roiling emotions, face smoothing out.

"You okay now, child?"

She looked up at him. "I apologize for that. I don't know what came over me. That's never happened before." She stared at her hands, noticing that her nails had broken the skin of her palms. Ignoring the stinging pain for the moment, she turned back to the old man. "What's going to happen to me now?"

"That's up to you, child. But if you want to, I can offer you a home."

_Home._ That was something she had never had. Yet how she knew that was beyond her at the time. _Home._ "What is the catch to this offer?" she asked, wary.

"No catch, child."

She frowned, looking at her hands again. She had no memories of where she was or how she got here. That meant she had nowhere to stay, and nothing to help her survive. This old man, he offered the only shelter she would have in this Goddess-forsaken place. And maybe, with time, she would remember who and where she was. She returned her gaze to the old man. "I'll take you up on your offer, on one condition."

He looked apprehensive. "And what would that be?"

"Do not pry into my past, should I recall it."

"Agreed."

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Time passed as she regained her lost strength. She grew from an ungainly child to an adolescent on the verge of womanhood. Her muscles firmed with the work the old man gave to her, first in straightening up the living quarters, then as he trained her to be a mechanic. When she was old enough to hold her own, he introduced her to the rowdy crowds at the bar he ran. She grew proficient in getting rid of troublemakers and keeping tabs on those who toed the edge.

But through all that time, she could not remember how she arrived Earthside. She could not remember where she came from. She could not remember her real name, her identity. And for that small missing piece of information, the old man gave her a name: Chase.

So Chase she became, until a meeting with a man that would change everything she knew about herself.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

"OI!" The feminine voice echoed through the large warehouse, making several mechanics jump in surprise. "Gimmie that damn welder before I come over there and maim you!"

The mechanic in question rushed over, shaking in fear. He offered the welder to the female standing before him, eyes lowered in respect. "Here you go, ma'am," he mumbled as the piece of equipment was taken from him.

"Get back to work, peon." The man scuttled back to his work station, not looking at any of his fellow workers. "Damn idiots aren't any help at all," the young woman muttered. She lifted the welder and tilted her head forward to lower the facemask she wore. The welder spit out sparks as she spot-welded a piece of metal into place. Once done, she set the tool on the ground and lifted up the face mask. Slate-grey eyes narrowed in speculation as she stared at her work. "That'll have to do for now."

"Chase!" She looked up at the catwalk. An old man stared down at her, frown gracing his wrinkled features. "Get your arse up here."

"I'm comin'!" Letting out a sigh, she grumbled as she headed to the lift that would take her up to the catwalk and the exit of the warehouse.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Chief waited at one of the back rooms of the bar, staring at the scientist pacing the room across from him. The man had showed up about an hour ago, wanting to give him information about the movement of some mobile suits between OZ bases. So Chief wanted Chase to meet the man and see what came of it. The door opened behind him and he watched the old scientist closely.

"Chief, what's the jib?" Chase stopped just inside the door, staring at the old scientist across the room. She tilted her head to the side and frowned, brows furrowed in confusion.

=*=*=*=

Professor G froze as the girl stepped into the room. Taller, yes, the hair was longer than what it was, and done up in a braid, the eyes were more expressive. Muscles were toned from work, the facial features more mature. It was her. She was alive.

"Asaia?" he whispered, wonder tingeing his voice.

The girl started, as if struck.

G stepped forward and reached out with a hand to touch the side of her face. "Asaia, you're alive. I had feared the worst when we lost contact with you six years ago."

"I don't know--" Pain sliced through her skull and she pulled back from the scientist. Pressure built behind her eyes and she raised her hands to cover them. Her knees went weak, and she fell to the floor, kneecaps banging against the ground. The pain became stronger, and black spots began to appear in front of her. She gasped as the pain doubled again, and slowly collapsed onto her side. Through the spaces in her fingers, both Chief and G could see silver light flashing from her eyes.

~FLASH~ The sight of an old man with a kind face, and a giant shadow behind him.

_'Are you sure I can work on this? To entrust something this powerful to a little girl is quite surprising.'_

_'I'm sure, child. I have faith in you.'_

~FLASH~ A young towheaded boy, running, covered in blood.

_'They killed him! They killed him before he could do anything!'_

~FLASH~ A scientist with pure evil written all over him, malice glinting in beady eyes.

_'You may seem to be only the human equivalent of age seven, but there is something definitely older about you.'_

_'If something like that is true, then I'm not going to tell you. That is my secret to keep and yours to never find out.'_

~FLASH~ Another scientist, this time with mechanical parts and a kind face, looking down with compassion.

_'Child, you know you can't run forever. Sooner or later you're going to have to face the boy.'_

_'I know that. I left for his sake. He couldn't be allowed to remember me.'_

~FLASH~ A dark alley, rain cascading down, thunder drowning out the sound of a gunshot.

_'It was my home. Now it no longer is. All I know about this place as home is that it was a nightmare. It's time for you to die, Terror. You've done enough harm and foulness to last several lifetimes.'_

~FLASH~ The inside of a hanger, floodlights illuminating a giant war machine.

_'That is the Black Death Gundam, the first one ever created. So far, no one else has the technology to build one. Within the next five years, mobile suit factories will grow Earthside and on the Colonies.'_

~FLASH~ The kind scientist smiling with happiness.

_'Whatever you may do, child, always know that L2 is your home. You will always be welcomed here.'_

_'I know. I know, and I thank you.'_

~FLASH~

The pain disappeared just as quickly as it had come, and she let out a sigh of relief. That was when she noticed that her face was wet with tears. Now thoroughly ashamed, she swiped her hands across her cheeks and slowly sat up. Both Chief and the scientist were looking at her with worry, and as Chief stepped forward to help her, she waved him off, not noticing his own sigh of relief as her eyes went from silver to slate grey.

She looked up at G, confusion evident on her face. "Who are you?" she asked, fingers rubbing her forehead. "Why do you seem so familiar to me?"

G glanced at Chief, and then looked back at Chase. "I knew you when you were a mechanic for Dr. J. You brought Heero Yuy to me after Terror had abused him. You built the mobile suits called Gundams. Shortly after you arrived Earthside we lost contact with you and feared you dead." He knelt in front of Chase and once again reached out a hand to touch her face. "Asaia, we thought you gone, and yet here you are, safe Earthside."

"What about that machine - Gundam - that I saw? The black one. Did I build it?"

Professor G's eyes flickered to Chief then back to Chase. "Yes. You built and piloted the Black Death Gundam against OZ and White Fang. You were a force to be reckoned with. No one could get close to you to take you down."

Chase rubbed her forehead, grimacing at the residual pain still present. "So let me get this straight. Ten years ago I built a war machine, messed with the mind of a seven-year-old child, killed the person that was abusing him and then brought him to you to be a pilot. Then six years ago I was the pilot of said war machine, I fought against two corrupt organizations, and somewhere along the line, I disappeared Earthside." She looked up at the scientist and sighed heavily. "This is confusing."

"I'd like for you to come with me back to L2. Being back where you spent most of your time may bring back more memories you've suppressed over the years."

Chase looked to Chief, and he nodded his permission. She let out a groan before looking back to the scientist. "Well, let's get to it then."

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Chase stared out of the port window as the transport docked at the L2 Colony Cluster, trying to dredge up some sort of feeling at returning to someplace she had supposedly lived. Nothing she had seen so far had sparked any recognition in her memories. She had the feeling that it would take something big to do anything for her. She backed away from the window and headed toward the airlock with the rest of the crew. Professor G watched her closely as the lock opened into the docking bay.

She showed no recognition of anyone standing there waiting, but that was expected. What he didn't expect was Walter, one of his lackeys, moving forward with joy on his face. He embraced Chase, tears running down his face. She just stood there, stiff in the embrace, somewhat embarrassed, and waited for the man to pull back. When he did, it was only long enough for him to regain his breath before he clasped her face between his hands, and planted a big kiss on her mouth. She sputtered and struggled, and finally Walter let her go.

"Welcome home, Asaia!" His voice was joyous, happiness transforming his face. When she didn't answer him, the happiness faded, replaced by apprehension. "Asaia?" Professor G stepped up to him and placed his hand on Walter's shoulder. That small movement was like an axe falling, and disbelief crossed Walter's features. "No." He turned to G. "She doesn't remember us?"

"I'm afraid not, Walter."

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

A few days had passed since Chase arrived at L2. She had spent that time watching the members of the scientific team work in their element, as beakers flared above Bunsen burners, as numerous liquids were mixed and solidified. She watched the mechanics build mobile suits in the west hangar, the movements like a tightly choreographed dance. It was only when she was looking down on the mechanics that the gears in her mind started to grind. Everything seemed all so familiar, yet at the same time everything was different.

She moved from the catwalk to the bank of computers lining the wall. Over the past few days, she had noticed technicians turning on the computers for the scientists, and they always left one computer alone. She headed for this computer, pulling out the chair that was in front of it and sitting down. One of the scientists looked over at sound of squealing wheels and his eyes widened. He cleared his throat, gaining her attention.

"That was your station, whenever you were here, Asaia. No one has touched it since you left." When she didn't answer him, the scientist coughed into his hand, embarrassed, and turned back to his work. Chase turned back to the computer, setting the fingers of her left hand on the keys, and her right on the mouse. At the internal compulsion, she started opening files and reading their contents. Hours passed as she went through the hard drive, oblivious to everything around her. She ignored the techs as they started to close down the hangars, ignored the scientists as they wrapped up their experiments, ignored everything to focus only on what she was reading. Lights soon shut down as people left the building, leaving only a few on around the computers.

The information contained on the hard drive was enormous. But it was the items that were hidden that were the most important to her. So foregoing the regular files, Chase searched the hard drive for GHOST files, knowing she would find quite a few. When the folders appeared, she was stunned by what they contained.

Plans for mobile suits the size of skyscrapers. Blueprints for safe houses - numbering in the hundreds of thousands - built both Earthside and on the Colonies. Yet what caught her attention, and held it for more than a few seconds, was the GHOST file named _Project Dragonfang_ , containing both blueprints and photos of a finished mobile suit called a Gundam. It was pitch black, and had as a main weapon a double-bladed thermal scythe. She read everything there was about the Gundam, feeling that this was something that had to do with her.

When she finally closed the files, she leaned back in her chair and stared at the computer screen, fingers laced together under her chin. Her eyes narrowed as her mind went over the files containing information on the Gundam. Her breath caught in her throat as she leaned forward and reopened the GHOST files, checking to make sure she had read the information correctly. Letting out a grunt at finding that what she thought and what was there was correct, she tapped her finger on the mouse, her mind calculating and compartmentalizing the information.

She finally shut down the computer, standing up and groaning as her vertebrae popped back into place. She knuckled her eyes, wiping away the strain of staring at a screen for several long hours. She flicked off the lights and headed out of the bay, intent on crawling into a bed and letting her sleeping mind continue sorting out the information she had found.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

It wasn't so much the lightening of the shadows that woke her as it was the insistence from her body for sustenance. Chase groaned into the stiff pillow, turning away from the window and burrowing further under the covers. She definitely hadn't taken a break for food in the hours of going through the computer. Letting out another groan, she slowly dragged her heavy body from the welcoming heat of the blankets. Heading into the bathroom, she splashed cool water on her face to finish waking up. After taking care of her morning ablutions, she dressed for the day, exiting the room and letting her nose lead her to the mess hall.

The cacophony of the mess hall made her wince as she joined the long line of workers at the buffet, her eyes flicking over each face. There was Tommy, the tech that had been sitting next to her in the computer bay. Behind him were the twins Kyle and Kevin, both troublemakers and mechanics. Sitting at the nearest table was Federline, one of the few women mechanics, and her brother Oliver. Next to them was Cedric of the wild hair and many piercings. He was sitting across from his girlfriend - now wife, judging by the ring on her finger - Juniper, who had her own share of piercings.

As she made her way down the buffet, she matched each face with a name and what she knew about them. She knew which ones were mechanics, which few worked on the electrical wiring, the ten or so that built weapons, the groups that went scavenging in space. By the time she had gotten her tray and food, she had categorized everyone in the hall. And as she finally found a seat, she was grateful for the bench holding her as she finally realized what had just happened. Her eyes widened in surprise as she raised a hand to cover her face. She _knew_ everyone here! And just yesterday she had known nothing about them!

A tray clattered onto the table in front of her, breaking through her surprise at herself. She peeked through her fingers and groaned silently at the face presented to her. "So, did'ja finally figure everything out, Asaia?" the young man asked, his dark blue eyes flashing beneath reddish bangs. His grin was manic as he stared at her, waiting for her answer.

"Shove a pipe up your arse and disappear, Josh. I'm not in the mood," she grumbled, picking up her fork and pushing around the scrambled eggs on her plate.

"I'm hurt, sweetheart," he moaned, hand clenching his shirt in a dramatic flair that was all him. "I saw the look on your face when you sat down. You remember everything now." She glared at him. Nosy bastard. "That was the way the GHOST drive works." He shrugged, spearing a sausage link with his fork and eating it. "Well, it's the way _that_ GHOST drive works. You designed it, you built it, and you put all your secrets on it. You're the only one who can access it; you're the only one it will respond to." Josh looked down at his plate, then back up at her. "Now all you have to do is retrieve Dragonfang."

Her heart froze in her chest, and her hand clenched her fork tight enough to hurt. "How do you know about that?" she whispered, grey eyes boring into Josh's. "That was one of the GHOST files."

The young man smirked. "I'm your dispatcher. I know all about your missions, all your fights. The old geezers in charge paired us together because we got along so well when we were younger." He snorted in derision. "You were at my throat _at least_ five times a day. We raised Hell from one end of the Colony to the other, giving quite a few heart attacks when we popped up unexpected and tore shit to pieces."

Chase mulled this information over, picking through the scrambled eggs. She shoved a piece of toast into her mouth, chewing methodically, mind whirling. There was only one course of action she could take. And it wouldn't do well to start it on an empty stomach, so she ignored Josh in favor of finishing her breakfast. Only once she had finished did she look up at him. "We do this on my terms," she said, pointing at his chest with her fork. "My call on everything. Agreed?"

"Agreed," Josh said, standing and picking up his tray. She joined him as he returned his used tray to the kitchen. "When do you want to start?"

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Chase stared out at the empty grass field before her. She grumbled to herself as she checked the coordinates on the tablet, making sure she was in the right spot. And according to the map, she was. Raising her hand, she touched the earpiece she wore and activated it. "Josh, did you send me the correct coords?"

" _Affirmative._ " There was a crackle of interference that made her wince before Josh continued. " _You should be directly above it._ "

"Yeah, right. I'm staring at an empty field here, arsewipe. Either the damn thing is invisible or it's underground. And I'm not feeling up to digging anywhere in this field, or walking the whole thing hoping to somehow run into the damn thing."

" _Well, it says here in the file that there should be a hangar in that area. Look around for a maintenance building or something of the like. That will probably be your best bet._ "

She grumbled some more, letting her gaze wander the area, eyes landing on a large building she had somehow overlooked in her initial scan of the area. _There._ She kicked the motorcycle she had ridden out there into life, tires squealing as she peeled out across the field. Her braid streamed behind her, stray hair whipping in her face. In moments she was beside the building and she cut the engine, letting the bike coast to a stop. Dismounting, she headed for the only visible door, lock picks in hand. But when she gripped the handle, the door shimmered and a keypad appeared on it.

Frowning, she touched the earpiece. "Josh, is there a sequence of numbers in that file?"

There was a slight bit of interference before Josh spoke. " _And why do you ask, beautiful?_ "

Chase sighed heavily. "Head out of your arse, twat. What was a normal door just sprouted a keypad. I need the number sequence."

" _Uh, lemmie see here._ " The sound of keys clacking came through the earpiece, and Josh muttering in anger followed swiftly behind it. " _Okay, you're gonna wanna enter this in fast,_ " he said, and rattled of a series of numbers. Chase entered them in as fast as she could, and was rewarded by the door beeping and sliding open.

"Bingo," she muttered, grinning at Josh's muted laughter. She slipped in the door, closing it behind her. When she turned around to see what was in the building, she stopped cold, breath hissing out between her teeth. She stepped forward, hand reaching out for the drop-cloth that covered something roughly twenty feet tall, and easily pulled it down, revealing what was hidden underneath it. "Sweet Merciful Goddess," she whispered, eyes roaming the large hand that rested there. Her mechanically-inclined mind catalogued the metal as Gundanium, the hardest metal known to mankind.

" _Asaia?_ " Josh asked, worried.

She closed her eyes, bringing a hand up to run over her face. "My name is Chase. Call me Asaia again and I'll rip you a new one through your spleen."

There was a pause before Josh answered. " _Uh, yeah, sure thing, Chase._ " There was the sound of a gulp as the young man swallowed. " _What did you find?_ "

"Pieces of a mobile suit. They're scattered through the whole building. I'm definitely in the right spot. Lemmie take a look around and I'll let you know what I find."

" _Agreed,_ " he said before another spatter of interference sounded. " _I'll be here._ "

She pressed on the earpiece to turn it off, slowly making her way through the mobile suit pieces. As she neared the middle of the building, the tarp-covered mounds decreased until there was a thirty foot circle of clear space surrounding what looked like office cubicles. Once she rounded the corner of it, it was revealed to be the top of an elevator. There was another keypad next to it, and calling up her memory, she input the same code she had used for the front door. The doors slid open, revealing the interior of the lift. She stepped inside and pressed the only button that was visible.

The lift jolted, cables whirring as the cage lowered. Roughly a minute passed before the cage stopped and the doors opened to show a catwalk in a large open space. Chase stepped out onto the mesh walkway that traveled the length of one of the walls, the lights flickering to life as she moved beneath them. She stopped in the middle and turned in a semi-circle, seeing nothing but the empty cave. She touched the earpiece, activating it once again.

"Josh, I'm in a cave that has nothing in it. I need you to find out what has to happen for that damn suit to show itself."

There was a crackle before the other spoke. " _There should be a keypad near the middle of the catwalk that's there. I've got another sequence of numbers you need to enter into it._ "

Chase looked down at the fence that acted as a barrier between her and empty space. "Yeah, I see it." Josh hummed in response, making her close her eyes in exasperation. That damn idiot just pushed all the wrong buttons. "The sequence, _fuckwit_." The young man rattled off numbers and letters, Chase entering them as fast as she heard them. When she was done, she stepped back, eyes darting as the cave began to rumble. Without any warning, a large mobile suit appeared just before her, the faceplate even with the catwalk. Neon green eyes lit up with a hum and the faceplate slid aside, revealing a cockpit.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Josh stared as the giant war machine powered into the hangar. It had been six long years since he'd seen the massive suit, and as always, he was in awe of it. That Asaia - _Chase_ , her name was Chase - had built it was remarkable. Even sitting idle for six years hadn't dulled the armor of the Gundam. He watched as it slowly walked into place before a catwalk situated near the far wall. While it settled down, he headed toward the catwalk, wanting to be the first to welcome Chase back to the Colony. Clasping his hands behind his back, he stood in front of the Gundam's faceplate, watching the glow in the neon green eyes fade as the faceplate hissed open.

Chase stepped out of the Gundam covered in sweat and ash, and smelling sharply of cordite. She smiled at him, grin manic, braid swinging violently behind her. There was a spatter of blood over her nose, which she had chosen to ignore, and there was more soaked into the shoulder of her shirt. She wasn't wounded, that he could tell, so the blood wasn't hers. Josh cocked his head to the side, expression inquisitive.

"Did you have fun out there?" he asked as Chase stepped up beside him. His nose wrinkled at the smell, and she frowned as she pulled at her shirt.

"Enough fun. Did you see the way those OZ dogs ran when I neared them?" He murmured a response. She made no remark about the shortness of his answer, just continued on. "I never realized I was missing this. How could I have forgotten what fun it is to chase down Ozzies and blow White Fang to pieces?"

"You need to report in to G. He's waiting for you in the main hall." Josh turned from her and walked back to the electronics room, a small smile breaking out on his face. He had missed the verbal sparring with her. And he was glad that she was back.


End file.
